Alex Anthopoulos has watched the rapid change in the National League East standings – but not, he insists, in amazement.
“Not amazed, (and) I’m not saying that in an arrogant sense because we’re playing better right now,” the Braves’ general manager said. “I just know it can change the other way quickly as well. There’s still so many games left.
“I felt this way at the trade deadline. People would ask me, ‘Why would you add (with the Braves in third place at the time)?’, and so on. With 60-plus games left at that time, that’s a lot of games. And with (40) games left, it’s a lot of games. The standings can change 10 games from now.”
They certainly have changed recently, the Braves rising from third place Aug. 1 (four games behind the first-place Mets and a half-game behind the second-place Phillies) to first place entering play Saturday (four games ahead of the second-place Phillies and six ahead of the third-place Mets).
According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the last team to turn such a large deficit into such a large lead in a comparably short time was the 2008 Los Angeles Dodgers, who went from 4-1/2 games behind to 4-1/2 games ahead in 15 days.
The Braves’ ascent reflects their superb play this month and dramatic falloffs by the division’s two other contenders.
From Aug. 1 through Friday, the Braves went 14-3 and the Mets 5-14 – a 10-game swing in the standings. From Aug. 9 through Friday, the Braves went 9-1 and the Phillies 3-7 – a six-game swing.
“Yeah, that’s baseball,” Braves catcher Travis d’Arnaud said Friday. “It’s crazy how the tables can turn so quick. We just have to stay humble and keep fighting and go out there and try to win every series until the end of it.”
After not winning -- or losing -- back-to-back games at any point in a 16-game stretch after the All-Star break, the Braves have put together win streaks of four, three and (entering Saturday) seven games while going 14-2 over their past 16 games. A team that didn’t have a winning record at any point this season until early August reached 10 games over .500 (66-56) with Friday’s win at Baltimore.
The Braves have capitalized on a soft stretch of their schedule – 12 of 15 games against well-below-.500 teams -- to make their move in the standings. This weekend’s series against the Orioles, who have MLB’s worst record and lost their 16th consecutive game Friday, completes that stretch. The Braves’ schedule then toughens considerably with their next eight games, starting Monday, coming against the Yankees, Giants and Dodgers.
Braves notes
-- The Braves entered Saturday night’s game one win from breaking the franchise’s modern-era single-season record of 11 consecutive road victories. The record, set by the 1956 Milwaukee Braves, was tied Friday.
-- Max Fried has allowed only two earned runs across 27 innings in his past four starts after pitching the first shutout and the first nine-inning complete game of his major-league career in a Greg Maddux-like 90 pitches Friday. “Physically, I feel great,” Fried said. “This is kind of where we need to hit our stride and finish strong.”
-- The Braves’ nine-game trip concludes Sunday afternoon with the finale of the series at Baltimore. Braves right-hander Touki Toussaint (2-2, 4.01 ERA) is scheduled to start against Orioles left-hander John Means (5-5, 3.44). The Braves will continue inter-league play with the opener of a two-game series against the Yankees at Truist Park on Monday night.
